Stove oven with removable partitions



Jan. 20, 1953 B. c. GOULD STOVE OVEN WITH REMOVABLE PARTITIONS 2 SHEETS SHEET 1 Filed Jan, '7, 1948 IN V EN TOR.

E y/'0 C. 62.21% BY I 5. l I I nmm mmmmn WHN EEHHMMU NW V Jan. 20, 1953 B. c. GOULD STOVE OVEN WITH REMOVABLE PARTITIONS 2 SHEETS-SHEET 2 Filed Jan. 7, 1948 JNVENTOR. Byrd 6.621122 firra/r/vfrs.

Patented Jan. 20, 1953 STOVE OVEN WITH REMOVABLE PARTITIONS Byron C. Gould, Detroit, Mich., assignor to The Murray Corporation of America, Detroit, Mich., a corporation of Delaware Application January 7, 1948, Serial No. 883

2 Claims.

This invention relates to cook stoves, and particularly to a cook stove having increased cooking capacity including a plurality of adjacent ovens having one or more removable partitions for enlarging the oven area. I

The present invention pertains to the use of the entire space within the stove cabinet for an oven area which may be divided by one or more removable partitions into smaller oven compartments for ordinary use. Doors are provided which enclose each of the compartments, having sealing means therebetween for sealing the ap between the doors when the partition aligned therewith is removed.

While stoves of the electric, gas, coal or oil type may be constructed in accordance with the present invention, for the purpose of illustration an electric range is shown having the base cabinet provided with two oven compartments having a removable partition therebetween. The openings of the compartment are enclosed by doors disposed in aligned sealed relation. Below the ovens a storage compartment is provided for the two different types of racks employed with the ovens. Long racks are employed to span the interior of the oven compartments when the central partition is removed and short racks are utilized to span each of the two compartments when the central partition is in place. A panel on the lower front portion of the cabinet is hinged thereto to enclose the compartment in which the rack and the central partition are stored when not in use. Like heating systems are employed for each of the oven compartments, the thermostatic elements of which are selected to operate under like heating conditions and are mounted in each of the oven compartments adjacent to the removable partition so that both will be subjected to the same heat for controlling the energization and de-energization of the respective oven heating elements when the partition is removed. A cooking top rests upon the cabinet and is provided with a plurality of electric cookin units, herein illustrated as six in number, to increase the top cooking capacity over the normal four burner arrangement now employed in the art.

Accordingly, the main objects of the invention are: to provide a stove having two adjacent oven compartments separated by a removable partition to form one large oven compartment; to provide rack supporting elements in adjacent oven compartments and on a removable partition therebeween and a rack storage compartment below the 'oven in rear of a hinged panel for storing one set of racks when the others are in use; to provide like heating elements for adjacent oven compartments having the removable partition therebetween, which are controlled by like thermostatic elements disposed adjacent to the partition in position to operate simultaneously when the partition is removed; and, in general, to provide a stove for cooking purposes having increased oven and top cooking capacity which is capable of operating efiiciently on a portion of the oven and top burner capacity.

Other objects and features of novelty of the invention will be specifically pointed out or will become apparent when referring, for a better understanding of the invention, to the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanyingdrawings, wherein:

Figure 1 is a perspective view, with parts in section, of a stove of the cookin type embodying features of this invention;

Fig. 2 is a sectional view of the stove illustrated in Fig. 1, taken on the line 2-2 thereof;

Fig. 3 is a sectional view of the structure illustrated in Fig. 2, taken on the line 33 thereof;

Fig. 4 is a sectional view of the structure illustrated in Fig. 2, taken on the line 44 thereof;

Fig. 5 is a perspective view of the stove illustrated in Fig. 1, with the central partition removed;

Fig. 6 is a broken view of structure, similar to that illustrated in Fig. 1, showing a modified form thereof, and

Fig. is a sectional view of the structure illustrated in Fig. 6, taken on the line 1-! thereof.

Referring to Figs. 1 to 5, a cooking stove is illustrated comprising a base cabinet l0 having a pair of oven compartments H and I2 closed by doors l3 and 14, respectively. The base cabinet supports a cooking top l5 havin a downwardly extending front flange I 6 which projects outwardly from the face of the cabinet ID to be flush with the face of the doors l3 and M. The cooking top has a splash back [1 extending upwardly at the rear and flanges 20 at the sides which are aligned with the side panels H! which are secured to the sides of the cabinet. A toe receiving panel I9 is supported below the doors on the front ofthe cabinet to be in aligned flush relation with the doors l3 and Id.

The cooking top I5 is provided with a plurality of burners 2|, herein illustrated as being six in number, which may be alike or which may vary in heat capacity. A control switch, operated by dial knobs 22, is provided for each of the burners, the dial knobs being aligned along the face of the of the front flange [6. A pair of outlet receptacles 23 is also illustrated as being mounted on the face of the flange I6. An electrically operated clock 24, having timin contacts therein, is mounted upon the top of the splash back I! and supports a light receptacle and reflector 25 for a lamp which illuminates the clock and the stove top.

Within the base cabinet, the'ovens H and I2 are mounted in the conventional manner, with the exception that the ovens are joined together at the bottom by a rib 26 and at the top and back by an L-shaped channel element 27 which is aligned with the rib. Sealing elements 2-8 are disposed on the projecting arms of the channel element 21 and the rib 26 has angembo ssed sealing and guide element 29 along the top thereof. A partition 3|, which is preferably of hollow box section filled with insulating material, has arecess 32 along its bottom edge. The recess mates with the guide element 2 9 on the rib 26 and forms a seal for the bottom thereof when the partition is disposed within the oven to divide it into two compartments, as illustrated in Fig. 1. The rear and top edges of the partition are sealed by the sealing elements '28.

Rack supporting lements 33 are provided on the side walls of the partition 31 and on the side walls 34 of the oven in aligned relation. These maybe separate channel elements, as illustrated in the drawing, or may be pressed-out portions of the walls, as conventionally employed. A plurality of short racks 35 are provided for each of the oven compartments H and I2 when used separately, and large racks 3B are supported by the two side walls 34 when the central partition 3| is removed and the two oven compartments I and I2 are employed as a single compartment.

A rack storage compartment 31 is provided below the oven compartments H and I2, having projecting ledges 3-3 for supporting the partition 3| and projecting ledges 39 for supporting the short racks 35. Additional projecting ledges 4| are provided near the bottom of the compartment 31 for supporting the large racks 36. The compartment is enclosed by the toe receiving panel |9 which is mounted on hinges 42 to swing downwardly, the movement of which is limited by arms 43 operating in slots 44 in the stove frame panel 45.

The oven enclosing doors l3 and M are mounted on hinges 46 on the stove frame panel 45. The hinges are secured at the sides and at the center of the frame panel above which slots are provided for receiving stop elements 41 which limit the outward and downward movement of the doors. The doors are herein illustrated as being of hollow box section, having a double glass window .48 in the faces thereof. On the top of the cabinet Ill, beneath the cooking top l5, three trays 49 are provided, one under each pair of front and back burners 2|. The trays are mounted .on slidesandmay be pulled forward for cleaning when the stove doors 3 and M are open.

Each of the oven compartments H and I2 has an electric heating unit in the bottom and a broiling unit 52 the top of conventional form. Both of these heating units are electrically energized through a plug and socket connection 53 at the back of the oven which permits the units to be removed for cleaning and repair. The doors, as illustrated more specifically in Fig. 4, have a sealing strip 54 between their mating edges for sealing the doors when the partition 3| is removed. The sealing strip '54 is supported on the edge of the door -|3 and is provided with a flexible portion which bows outwardly into engagement with the edge of the door l4.

Independent circuits are provided for each of the oven compartments connecting the two heating units 5| and 52 in a selective manner, the top unit for broiling, the bottom unit for baking, and both units for preheating. The desired temperature is obtained by adjusting a dial knob 55 for the compartment II and a dial knob 56 for the compartment l2. A selecting knob 51, adjacent to each of the dial knobs, is employed for adjusting the circuits for broiling, baking and preheating. A pair of lights 58 and 59 is employed, one on each side of the dial knob for each of the units 5| and 52, to show whether one or both are in operation.

The two circuits are connected by conduits 6| and 62 to the timing clock 24 of conventional form, so that either or both of the circuits to the compartments can be operated through the timing mechanism of the clock. A third dial knob 64 on the splash back I! is similar in appearance to the dial knobs 55 and 56 but is employed to operate a timing element by which a number of minutes may be set off and a bell rung at the end of the period.

Thermostatic control bulbs 65 and 66 for the electric circuits of the oven compartments H and I2, respectively, are located within each respective compartment adjacent to the movable partition 3| so as to have both heating units of each compartment controlled at the same point in the oven. This permits independent control of either or both compartments when the partition 3| is in place, and operates the oven elements simultaneously when the partition 3| is removed because of their adjacent location within the oven. Should one door only of the oven compartment be opened when the large oven compartment is being utilized, the thermostatic bulb back of the door may energize the heating units on that side of the oven compartment to pick up the temperature on that side until it is equalized within the entire large oven compartment.

Referring to Figs. 6 and 7, a slightly different form of support for the door hinges is illustrated. In this embodiment, a separate channel bar 10 spans the side frame of the cabinet Ii] back of the front frame panel 45 and beneath the oven compartments. The bar is disposed out of the direct oven heat and will not warp as readily as the panel .45 and therefore will retain the adjacent edges of th doors l3 and I4 properly aligned and effectively sealed when the doors are in closed position. The center hinges H are secured directly to the web of the bar In and project through enlarged slots in the frame panel 45 to permit relative movement therebetween which may occur due to the difference in temperature between the bar and panel. Insulating material 12 surrounds the oven compartments on the top, bottom, sides and back and provides insulation for the channel bar 10 to limit the degree of tern perature change occurring thereto.

What is claimed is:

1. A stove having a base cabinet with an oven compartment provided therein, a removable vertical partition in said oven compartment dividing it into two separate oven compartments, a ridge extending upwardly from the bottom of the oven compartment from the front to the rear thereof on which said partition rests, said ridge and partition having complementary rail and groove contact means mounted thereon and constituting a connection and seal therebetween, a channel presenting downwardly from the top of the oven encompassing the upper edge of the partition, said partition being hollow, and insulating material within said hollow partition.

2. In a stove, a base cabinet having an oven compartment therein, a pair of aligned adjacent doors for enclosing said compartment, a vertical partition removably supported at the mating edges of the doors for dividing the compartment into two substantially equal and separate oven compartments, a heating unit in each of said compartments, separate supply and control means for said separate heating units including thermostatic means, and means mounting said thermostatic control means within said separate oven compartments adjacent to each other and adjacent to and independent of said removable partition for independently controlling each heating unit from the same area within the oven compartment when the partition is removed.

BYRON C. GOULD.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 320,111 Anthony June 16, 1885 518,903 Stone Apr. 24, 1894 1,109,263 Taylor Sept. 1, 1914 1,398,725 Kneier Nov. 29, 1921 1,533,283 Thornton Apr. 14, 1925 1,745,420 Hewitt Feb. 4, 1930 1,748,194 Smith Feb. 25, 1930 1,878,332 Sohirmer Sept. 20, 1932 2,339,398 Hennessy 1 Jan. 18, 1944 2,478,526 Danford 1 Aug. 9, 1949 

